In mid-September, there were five storms churning around the Atlantic Ocean simultaneously for only the second time on record.September, which falls within the peak of the hurricane season, saw a record 10 named storms form within the month.This was the record fifth consecutive year to see a category 5 storm form.This November was the first on record to have two major hurricanes, Eta and Iota.The old record, for November 8, was held by the Cuba Hurricane of 1932. Hurricane Iota was the latest known category 5 hurricane in the Atlantic, reaching that status on November 16.Delta’s landfall was the first time a Greek-alphabet-named hurricane has made landfall in the U.S.Zeta was the record fifth named storm to hit Louisiana in a single season.this year, tying 18 for the most continental U.S. Hurricane Zeta was the sixth hurricane to hit the U.S. Prior to 2020, the season with the most landfalls was 1916, which had nine. It broke the record set just weeks earlier by Hurricane Zeta and Hurricane Delta before it. When Tropical Storm Eta made landfall on Florida’s island of Lower Matecumbe Key on November 8, it became the only 12th named storm to hit the U.S.For example, Delta was the earliest 25th named storm of any season, beating out Tropical Storm Gamma, which formed on November 15, 2005. Twenty-seven of the 30 storms that formed this season were the earliest of their storm number to do so. (Named storms are those that reach at least tropical storm strength, with winds of 39 to 73 miles per hour.) The 2020 season surpassed 2005 as the one with the most named storms on record: 30.This is only the second time that the official alphabetical list of hurricane names has been used up, meaning forecasters have had to move to the supplementary list of Greek letter names.Here are some of the records it achieved: The 2020 Atlantic hurricane season was a doozy. This is a running list of all the ones that have been set this year. These factors have helped push some of this year’s disasters to surpass-and in some cases, shatter-previous records. And rising seas and heavier downpours mean higher flood risks during storms. Hotter weather dries out the grasses and forest debris that can ignite, fueling bigger and longer-lasting wildfires. Climate change, fueled by greenhouse gas emissions from energy use and industrial processes, has also upped the ante. The buildup of communities in vulnerable areas, such as along the coasts and fire-prone areas of the West, means more people are in harm’s way. Though they are called natural disasters, the toll they take comes in part from human actions. Wildfires have ravaged the western U.S., and tropical cyclones have popped up left and right, with several causing significant damage to coastal areas. This year has been a standout year for all the wrong reasons, including its devastating natural disasters. Editor’s Note (12/22/20): This story has been updated to reflect new records set through the November 30 end of the hurricane season.
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